From Columbus to Augusta to Harrisburg, the past two weeks have delivered a flurry of state-level cannabis moves that hint at the next chapter in U.S. marijuana policy. Here’s what just happened in Ohio, what prohibitionists are attempting in Maine, and why Mike Tyson suddenly became a headline in Pennsylvania—and what to watch for next.

Ohio: Senate Rejects House Changes To Cannabis & Hemp Bill

What happened. On October 30, the Ohio Senate voted 32–0 to reject House changes to SB 56, legislation that would simultaneously revise the voter-approved adult-use marijuana program and create a regulatory framework for intoxicating hemp products (e.g., delta-8, hemp THC beverages). The unanimous non-concurrence sends the bill to a conference committee to reconcile differences between chambers.

The Senate’s core objection wasn’t just about marijuana—it centered on hemp. Senate leaders said the House version left “loopholes” for synthetic THC and allowed too much latitude for hemp retailers, including a 300-day grace period and weak zoning limits. Meanwhile, the House draft also retained several provisions advocates say would scale back parts of Issue 2, the adult-use law voters passed in 2023—such as eliminating some anti-discrimination protections for lawful users, re-criminalizing possession of cannabis sourced out-of-state, and capping THC levels in flower and concentrates.

Why it matters. SB 56 is the most significant post-legalization rewrite yet, touching taxes, product caps (35% THC cap in flower; 70% in extracts under the House version), public-use limits, and a licensing structure for intoxicating hemp, including on-premise hemp beverages (5 mg) and take-home options (10 mg) with a per-gallon tax. At the same time, a temporary restraining order is blocking Gov. Mike DeWine’s 90-day executive ban on intoxicating hemp, adding urgency for lawmakers to craft a durable statute.

What to expect.

• Conference committee negotiations will determine whether adult-use product caps, employment/child-custody protections, and out-of-state possession rules survive. Watch for a compromise that tightens hemp retail while dialing back the most controversial marijuana revisions.
• Don’t forget the market context: Ohio crossed $3 billion in combined medical + adult-use sales, with about $703 million in the first year of recreational alone—pressure that favors clear, stable rules rather than constant rewrites.

Maine: A New Ballot Initiative To Re-Criminalize Parts Of Legalization

What happened. Nearly a decade after voters approved adult-use cannabis (Question 1, 2016), a citizen initiative backed by conservative operatives has been submitted to Maine’s Secretary of State to roll back large parts of legalization. As drafted, the measure would repeal commercial adult-use sales and end home grow, while keeping possession of small amounts legal and leaving the state’s medical program intact. Proponents have requested bill-drafting changes; once finalized, the measure would undergo a fiscal review before petitions can circulate.

How we got here. Maine legalized in 2016, then spent years building out rules and launching the commercial market. The new push would unwind that architecture despite steady tax revenue and broad public acceptance, according to reform advocates quoted in coverage of the filing. READ MORE: Maine State Legislature

What to expect.

• Process & timing. After the Revisor’s Office adjusts language and a fiscal impact statement is issued, organizers can collect signatures. If certified, the measure could go to the Legislature (which can enact, reject, or send it to voters), or directly to a statewide ballot on the next eligible election date. Watch the Secretary of State’s timeline and signature threshold updates.
• Regional ripple effects. The same outlet reports a parallel effort in Massachusetts aimed at a 2026 rollback. If either campaign qualifies, expect a major industry and civil-liberties fight over recriminalization vs. regulation in New England.

Pennsylvania: Mike Tyson Joins The Fight For Adult-Use Legalization

What happened. On October 29, former heavyweight champion and cannabis entrepreneur Mike Tyson visited Harrisburg to meet with Gov. Josh Shapiro and legislative leaders, arguing that comprehensive adult-use regulation is the best way to protect consumers from untested hemp intoxicants and “bad cannabis,” and to stop tax revenue from bleeding to neighboring legal states. Coverage notes he met with Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward and others; the visit was organized with legalization advocates.

The policy backdrop. Pennsylvania’s House narrowly passed HB 1200 (state-store model) in May 2025, but the bill died in the Senate Law & Justice Committee. Other proposals for a private retail model (SB 120, HB 20, HB 1735) remain stuck. Meanwhile, a separate bill to create a Cannabis Control Board—framed as a cleanup of existing medical and hemp markets, not adult-use legalization—advanced out of committee this fall. The overall dynamic: the House is warmer to legalization; the Senate GOP remains skeptical. READ MORE: MPP

Why Tyson’s appearance matters. Celebrity advocacy doesn’t change votes by itself, but it can normalize the issue with voters and give cover to fence-sitting Republicans—exactly what some Pennsylvania reform advocates say is needed to crack the logjam. Tyson’s messaging also aligned with a bipartisan concern gripping many states: how to regulate intoxicating hemp (delta-8, THCP beverages, etc.) that proliferated after the 2018 Farm Bill. READ MORE: Axios

What to expect.

• Near term. Expect hearings focused on safety standards, testing, and a hemp intoxicants fix—themes that could build a policy bridge between skeptical Republicans and pro-legalization Democrats. If leadership allows floor time in 2026, a narrow, compromise adult-use bill (private retail, robust testing, DUI clarity, youth prevention funding) is plausible.
• If nothing moves. Cross-border leakage to New Jersey, New York, Maryland and Ohio (all legal) will continue to be a fiscal talking point for the Shapiro administration.

The Common Thread: Hemp Intoxicants, Voter Mandates, And “Who Regulates What?”

Across all three states, the same three tensions keep surfacing:

1. Hemp intoxicants vs. marijuana programs. Post-2018 Farm Bill, states are racing to regulate delta-8/THC beverages and novel cannabinoids. Ohio’s SB 56 is a case study; Pennsylvania is teeing up similar standards; Maine’s rollback push cites concerns with commercial markets more broadly. Expect age gates, testing mandates, potency caps, and tax parity debates to dominate 2026 sessions.
2. Respecting voter intent. When lawmakers change initiated statutes (as in Ohio), they risk backlash if revisions are seen as undermining what voters passed. Maine flips the script: opponents of legalization are using the same ballot process to repeal retail and home grow. Both paths will test how firmly legalization is embedded in each state’s political culture.
3. Institutional models. Pennsylvania illustrates the split between state-store vs. private retail frameworks—and the reality that legalization can stall not over if but how. Watch whether an incremental “control board + hemp fix” becomes the legislative on-ramp to a broader adult-use compromise.

Timeline Watch

• Ohio (SB 56): Conference committee negotiations through the fall; watch for a compromise package that tightens hemp and softens the sharpest curbs on adult-use. Court action on the hemp ban TRO runs through early December, adding pressure to legislate. READ MORE: Ohio Capital Journal
• Maine (rollback initiative): Language revisions → fiscal note → petition period. If signatures are certified, the proposal heads to the Legislature and potentially the statewide ballot thereafter. Expect vigorous industry and advocacy campaigns either way. READ MORE: Marijuana Moment
• Pennsylvania (adult-use): Expect hemp-safety and market-governance bills to advance first. Any 2026 adult-use vote will likely hinge on a bipartisan, public-safety-framed compromise and leadership willingness to schedule floor time. READ MORE: PhillyVoice

Bottom Line

Ohio’s unanimous Senate rejection pushes its cannabis-and-hemp package into high-stakes negotiations that could redefine both markets. Maine’s proposed rollback is the clearest test yet of whether voters will tolerate re-criminalization by ballot after years of regulated sales. And in Pennsylvania, Mike Tyson’s advocacy underscores a broader shift: legalization politics are now as much about consumer safety and hemp loopholes as they are about liberty and tax revenue.

Taken together, these stories point to 2026 as a pivotal year for statehouses to lock in coherent rules for intoxicating hemp, settle fights over voter intent, and, in holdout states, decide whether to finally bring adult-use cannabis into the regulated economy.